Daniel a



D. A. CARPENTER.

BUCKLE.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 14, I914 RENEWED OCT. 25. I918.

Patented June 10, 1919.

WITNESSES 'a tongue are combined so that they consti- --tut'e members of a spring clamp, one aw of UNITED STATES PATENT DANIEL A. onnrnnrnn, or iinw YORK, n. Y.

BUCKLE.

' Application filed February 14, 1914, Serial No. 818,625.; Renewed. October 25, 1918.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I,'DA mL A. CARPEN- 'lER, a citizen-of the 'United States, anda resident of the county, city, and State of New York, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Buckles, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description, reference being had to the acompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification. i

This invention relates to improvements in buckles which hold straps or bands by gripping them between jawsthat act as do the jaws of a clamp, the main object of the invention being to produce a simple and satisfactory buckle not having a pointed tongue or teeth or prongs and capable of holding unperforated leather straps, and bands of elastic and non-elastic webbing and other material. The invention consists of ,a buckle-having the distinguishing characteristics which are hereinafterdesoribed and specified in the claims. r .1

On the accompanying sheet of drawings which illustrate buckles of different forms and on which like reference-numerals designate like parts of difierent views:

Figure 1' is a front View of a fragment of a leather Waist-belt including the beltbuckle; i

Fig. a central longitudinal section thereof; t r

Fig. 3, a plan of this buckle, the broken line :0, m and arrow indicating the plane of the section and direction of the view shown in Fig. 2; t 1 l Fig. 4, a plan of anotl1er.beltbuckle, the frame being made of a single piece of wire having its endsinclosediin asleevewhich is shown in section;

- Fig. 5, a longitudinal section. of this buckle, the plane of the section and direction of the view being indicated by the broken line 7 y and arrow,Fig. 1; r

In each of-the'buckles'showna frameand the clamp or buckle being an end of the frame andth'e other" an end of the tongue.

The frame shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 8. may be either cast or stamped from flat stock. It iscomposed of the end-bars 1 and 2, the

sides 3 and 4, the'pair of stop-lugs 5, and the pair of perforated lugs 6, the bar 1 being the front. end of :thelIframe-and; buckle. The tongue 1s a piece of spring-wire, passing Specification of Letterslatent.

the buckle which Patented June 10, 1919.

Serial No. 259,715.

through the perforations in the lugs G and having at its ends eyes 7 (Fig. 2) that loosely surround portions of the lugs so that the tongue can swing on these tongue-supporting lugs as pivots. It comprises the hook shaped portions 8, the lateral stop-portions 9 and the end or bar 10 which is the front end of the tongue, the portions 8 extending from the eyes backward and then transversely of the buckle and forward and outward to the stop-portions, the eyes being face to face and the distance between them being preferably about equal to the length ofthe bar 10. A part of the belt near the end 11 passes through the loop 12 and around the endbar 2 of the buckle and behind the loop, these front and rear portions being sewed orotherwise fastened together close to the ends of the loop. The clamping jaws of the buckle, which are the bar 1 of the frame and the bar 10 of the tongue, are so near to- 'gether,-when they are in the relative positions in which they are shown, that the space between them is less than the normal thickness of the belt-strap, and then the lateral stop-portions 9 of the tongue rest on the stop-lugs 5 ofthe frame. These stop-lugs and the perforated lugs 6 are behind the plane in which lie the faces of the sides of the frame, and when the tongue is in contact with the lugs 5 it is between the sides of the frame, and the end lO'of the tongue is at the inner side or edge of the bar 1 of the frame,

as shown'by Fig. 2. The tongue is elastic and if pressure, equal to or somewhat less than the greatest stress which the tongue back, or tend to spring back, to its normal state. T The eyes- 7 then rock slightly in the perforations in the lugs-6S0 that the portions 8 not only change somewhat in shape but also turn on the front sides of the eyes as pivots, their rear edges moving both backward and outward. These portions 8 of the tongue form springs which are strong and effective" and enable a buckle to hold straps which vary considerably in thickness. When the belt 'is in use only those parts of are plainly shown in Fig. 1 are to be seenffrom the front. The part '13 ofthebelt. then passes behind the clamping bar 1 of. the frame and between it and theotherblamping bar 10 of thetongue.

The bar 10 is swung forward, by turning the wire, has the end-bar or clamping aw 20,

' the other buckle.

tongue onits pivots, to enable theend 1 1 of the belt readily to be inserted in the frame and between the clamping bars. The belt can be drawn taut by pulling the-part 13 against and over the inner edge of the bar 1, and is clamped in the buckle by pushing the bar 10 backward as far as it will easily go and then applying pressure, usually with the thumb, to the face of'the belt close to the bar 1 and forcing the bar 10 farther back,

springing and slightly shortening the tongue until the stop-portions 9 of the tongue make contact with the stop-lugs 5 of the buckle-frame. As more than half of the bar 10 lies behind the plane containing the piv, otal axis of the tongue and the line along which the belt-strap is most tightly pressed against the bar 1, when the strap has been clamped in the buckle .as described, the tongue will not then turn on its axis to release the strap until force great enough to spring the tongue has been applied to it, but

' the bar 10 backward, or force the bar 1 forward, from its proper relation to the other clamping bar.

The frame :of the buckle shown in Figs- 1 and 5 is made of spring-wire and comprlses 1 the clamping bar 1 1, the inwardly-extend- 40 'ing stop-portions 15 on the ends of this bar,

the central portions 16, the tongue-supporting portions 17 and the end-bar 18, the ends of the wire being held together by the sleeve 19 at the middle of the .bar *18. Thesleeve is not an essential part of this frame, for the wire willkeep substantially the form of the frame without the aid of the sleeve when the buckle is attached to a strap. The tongue which is shown combined with this frame and which is a single piece of springand the portions 21 that form the sides of the tongue, the wire next to itsends being bent into eyes 22 through which theportions 17 of the frame pass, so that the tongue is pivoted to the frame as shown. The stopportions 15 of this frame, acting as do the stop-lugs 5 of the frame first described, form stops for the tongue of the buckle, and the sides 21 of the tongue act on the portions 15 ofthe frame and form stops for it, and the stops 15 and 21 cooperate when the buckle is in use as do the stops 5 and 9 of The relations of the clamping bars 14 and 20'are such that when the tongue makes contact with the portions 15 of the frame the space between those jaws is normally less than the thickness'of a strap to which the buckle is to be applied. This frame is elastic, so that if pressure, equal to or somewhat less than the greatest stress which the frame will bear, is applied properly to the bar 14 the frame will be lengthened slightly and whenthe pressureismemoved will spring back, or tend to spring back, to its normal state. This wire buckle may be combined with the belt-strap. represented in Figs. 1 and 2 to form a belt, by attaching the strap to the bar 18 so that the bar will lie in: the foldof. thestrap as does the bar-2 of the other buckle. Both buckles are operated insubstantially the same way and-produce substantially the same efiect, al-

though theframe of the wire buckle springs so as to lengthen it, whereas the tongueof ,the other springs so as to shorten it, during the operation of clamping the strap.

It is evident that the buckles described and covered by the claims of this application can be used on many straps besidesbelt straps, and it will be understood that the invention can be embodied iii-devices differ.- ing more or less in form and details ofconstruction from those which are represented by the drawings. 7

Having thus described .my nvention,

what I. claim as new and desire (to secure by Letters Patent, is: H V 1'. Ina buckle the combination of a frame and a tongue forming anembers of a clamp,

one jawof. which is the front .end of the frame, and one member of which is a piece ,of' spring wire bent to render the .member elastic longitudinally, the .tongue being loosely attached to the rear part of the frame andformin'g the other jaw which is the front end of the tongue, and theframe havingatthe sides ofthe front part thereof inwardly extending stopportio ns on which the tongue acts'only'when its jaw is at the inner side of the jaw of the frame and on whichthe sides ofthe tongue bear close to the ends of its jaw.

l 2. In a buckle the combination of a frame and a longitudinally elastic *tongueforming members of a c'lamp,one jaw .of whichis the front-end of the frame,1the tongue being apiece of Wire loosely attached atits endsto the rear part of the frame and forming the other jaw which is the front end of the tongue, and the frame having at the sides of the front part thereof inwardly-extending stop-portions on which the tongueacts only when its jaw is at theinnerside of the j aw' of theframe and on whichthe sidesof the tongue bear close to the-ends of its jaw.

3. In a buckle the combinationof a frame "and alongitudinally elastic tongue forming members of a clamp-the frontend of the frame being one jaw andthe "frame having tongue-supports at the sides of its rear part, the tongue being a piece of wire having at its ends eyes which loosely engage the tongue-supports, and extending from the eyes backward and then transversely and forward and outward and forming the other jaw which is the front end of the tongue, and the frame having at the sides of the front part thereof inwardly extending st0pportions on which the tongue acts only when its jaw is at the inner side of the jaw of the frame and on which the sides of the tongue bear close to the ends of its jaw.

4. In a buckle the combination of a' frame and a longitudinally elastic tongue forming members of a clamp, the front end of the frame being one jaw and the frame having tongue-supports at the sides of itsrear part, the tongue being a piece of wire having at its ends eyes which loosely engage the tongue-supports, and extending from the eyes backward and then transversely and forward and outward and forming the other jaw which is the front end of the tongue, and the frame having at the sides of the front part thereof inwardly extending stopportions on which the tongue acts only when its jaw is at the inner side of the jaw of the frame and on which the sides of the tongue bear close to the ends of its jaw, the stop-portions and tongue-supports being behind the plane in which lie the faces of the sides of the frame, and the tongue being between the sides of the frame when it is in contact with the stop-portions.

5. A buckle-tongue composed of a piece of spring-wire having eyes at its ends and forming a clamping bar or jaw which is the front end of the tongue, the eyes being face to face, the distance between them being about equal to the length of the jaw, and the wire extending from the eyes backward and then inward and then forward and outward and forward to the ends of the bar or aw. J DANIEL A. CARPENTER.

In presence of- CHARLES E. SMITH, R. H. STROTHER.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, I). G. 

